Till the World Ends
by JoshButro
Summary: Join the Great Mage on an epic journey across the land to defeat the Evil Force of the Dark Realm. Meet friends, learn magic, and discover new places on this adventure.
1. NOTHING

Chapter Zero - [NOTHING]

"An evil force resurrected out of the darkness has taken over the land known as the Dark Realm. It is believed to be human. Some say it is a demon. Many of the frightened are not sure what it is. Everyone is certain though, this purely evil presence can be felt across the lands. The evil feeling can be felt as far away as villages over the mountains, deep into the forests, and along the ocean coastline. Wherever a village is located, the evil force can be felt. Everyday it is growing, and everyday is a little bit closer to the annihilation of our world. It must be stopped before it destroys our existence."

"That's an interesting story." JoshButro said as the depth of what was happening set in.

"It's not just a story. It is our future. It is what will happen if nothing is done to defeat the evil." The tavern bartender replied. "This is what our world is facing and no one has been brave enough to defeat, well..." The bartender's face turned solemn. "No one who has left to fight it has returned. Many men who were great swordsman and great archers have gone toward the Dark Realm only to be killed along the way."

"I've heard the stories many times in this tavern of different townsfolk packing their gear, grabbing their weapons, and mounting their horses to go defeat the evil force." JoshButro remembered countless tales shared over a pint.

The bartender leaned in closer and whispered as he polished a beer glass. "Rumor has it that you are the descendant of a power family of mages that survived the wars that last ravaged the land." He stood back up and thought for a second. "I think if anyone can defeat the evil force, it is you."

"Me? Why me? You tell a story of such an evil force and many great swordsmen and archers not returning, and you think me alone can walk across this land and defeat it." JoshButro stood up from the bar stool and grabbed his beer glass. "Do you plan to send me toward the Dark Realm, armed with only this beer glass?" He slammed the glass back down on the bar. "Fill it up while I think about this. If I'm going to march to my death, I might as well enjoy it first."

"You are the one to defeat the evil force across the land. You won't have to go alone. Others will join in your journey, but you are the one who will lead them. You have the strength of magic inside you, it just needs to be awoken. You are the next in line of the Great Mages. Your father and your father's father..." The bartender reassured.

"I know, I know. Great Mages and I am the next one descended from them. It still seems like a grand ordeal to defeat this evil." JoshButro thought deep about this struggle and if nothing was done about it, could mean the end of all things. "You said others would join me."

"Yes. Oh yes. Others will join you in this quest." The bartender encouraged. "Unless you want to go alone."

JoshButro turned around and announced to the tavern. "People of this great tavern. You have all heard the stories about the evil force that resides in the Dark Realm. You have all heard the stories about the great swordsmen and archers that have tried to defeat the evil force, but none returned. Something must be done in order to save our world. That something is me. I, JoshButro, am going to travel across the lands and recruit people willing to join me as I plan on defeating the evil force." The speech ended triumphantly, but the answer was not. "Will no one from this tavern join me?"

None of the other tavern patrons made a sound and a few even looked around as not to make eye contact.

"It appears everyone has heard the stories one too many times to be willing to risk their life." The bartender was trying to comfort as he thought of a better answer. "You may need to start your journey and meet people from other villages that are braver and willing to set out with you on this adventure."

"You are right. There has to be others along the way that will lend their swords and their bows toward the overall goal." JoshButro finished the beer in his glass. "Others will be ready to fight for the good of the land." He said as he looked again at the patrons who heard his speech, but were not willing to act upon it. "I shall set out in the morning and see where the adventure goes."

"Remember, you are the Great Mage, and others will follow you and help you." The bartender encouraged. "Seek out those in villages across the land and maybe other places yet to be discovered. Be aware of your surroundings, and be careful."

"I can do that." JoshButro said with confidence. "But first, do you have any suggestions where I should start?"

"The Dark Realm lays north and east of here. It's best not to go toward there yet. I would go west of here toward the first village located past the Empty Plains and through the Deep Forest. I forget the name though. I haven't been there in ages." The bartender took out a napkin and drew a very crude map. "If you get lost, here is a map."

"Thanks for the arrow pointing to the edge. Hope I don't drop this and lose which direction is west." JoshButro sarcastically answered. "Time to get some gear ready to head out on the adventure tomorrow morning." He walked towards the exit and turned one last time to face the tavern patrons. "Remember me, the Great Mage JoshButro, as I set out to defeat the evil force and one day I will return victorious."


	2. FIRE

Chapter One – FIRE

"Let me check again to ensure I have all the gear I'm going to need." JoshButro said to himself. He looked at the contents of his pack. "I have food, my armor, and the map the bartender gave me. It doesn't seem like that is enough, but hopefully I find things along the way. If not I can always buy them at the next village." He scratched his head as he thought what else he could take along on this journey. "I think just heading toward the next village, and waiting to see what happens is the best route."

He picked up the pack and draped it over one shoulder and headed out of his house. "Last time I leave this house as a lowly mage, but I shall return as the champion over the evil of the Dark Realm." He turned to his right and looked up the main road of the village and saw the tavern at the end. "I hope the bartender was right and I meet people along the way willing to help."

He turned and started down the path that led to the entrance of the village. "One day I will return." He said as he took a final look at the village he grew up in.

Past the fence separating the village from the outside world lays the Empty Plains. "A vast rolling field filled with so much... nothingness." JoshButro thought as he took the first steps on his adventure.

"The bartender said to travel west toward a village on the other side of the forest after the plains." He looked up at the sun as it as rose part way through the sky. "If I follow the sun until midday it will lead me westward, so I should start going in this direction." He altered his path slightly to follow the sun.

The start of the journey seemed to go slow because the Empty Plains lived up to their name. JoshButro stopped and put his hand up to his eyes to try to see far into the distance. "Nothing. Nothing in sight whatsoever. These plains are so... wait a minute. I think..." He squinted to try to focus on the object in the distance. "I see a few trees, but I see something moving under that one particular tree."

The excitement was strong as he started walking again at a slightly faster pace toward the trees. "It was moving and now it's stopped. It looks like a person and not an animal." A thought crossed his mind at that instant. "Maybe, just maybe, they will be willing to join me on my adventure." This motivated him to speed up his pace again.

"I need to hurry before they leave and the opportunity is missed." The Great Mage picked up his pace again into a quick walk. Any faster and he would be jogging. "I hope I get there soon enough and I think I will." His pace slowed back down to a walk. "It looks like they are laying down, almost like they are sleeping. I guess I have some time to get there."

The walk took a longer than anticipated, but the trees grew in size as JoshButro approached them. The person he had seen from far in the distance was still sleeping under the shade of the trees. He cautiously walked up toward the sleeping man, but startled him awake as he stepped on a fallen branch and snapped it.

"Who's there?" The man woke up and jumped to his feet. "Who are you? What do you want?" The man took another step closer to close the gap in case anything went wrong.

"I am the Great Mage JoshButro and I am traveling across the land in search of others to help me defeat the evil force in the Dark Realm." JoshButro explained to the man who seemed more eager now that he was awake. "I need to go defeat this evil or it will destroy the world. Many people..."

"I've heard the stories before. Many people have tried to defeat it and none have returned. Great swordsmen and great archers have tried but the evil still lives." The man answered back as his enthusiasm grew. "This is why I am training to be a ninja. I was practicing before the sun came up, and several hours of practice wore me out so I decided to take a nap under these trees. The shade will keep me cool until the sun gets directly overhead."

"A ninja? Since you have heard the stories, do you want to join me on my quest to travel across the land and defeat the evil force?" JoshButro asked the stranger in hopes his eagerness turned into him offering his help.

The man took no time to answer as it seemed he was waiting to be asked. "Of course I'll join you. I've trained to be a mighty ninja ever since I first heard the stories of the evil that lives in the Dark Realm. So how many of us are there now?"

"Well, I'm the first and you are the second. So two people, but there should be more people along the way." JoshButro hesitantly explained. "I hope to find more along the way."

"You will find more people. I saw another person from my village on my way out here yesterday. She was working on her shooting skills over by another group of trees." The man reassured as he described another person who may be willing to help. "She is from the same village as I am. It's located past the forest from here. Many have heard the stories and are practicing their skills to gather strength to help defeat the evil. You should try to recruit some people from there."

JoshButro looked a little confused but glad he found the man under the trees. "I was heading to that village first. You have been so much help, but I'm afraid to ask, I never did catch your name."

"Domdouken." He replied. "If you follow me, I'll lead you to the skilled shooter from my village, and she will probably join us."

"Such a strange name." JoshButro muttered to himself. "Alright, lead the way."

Domdouken looked around and pondered which way he had seen her. Several quick loud booms pierced the sky and surprised both men. "That way. That's her gun shots. I can tell because she is the fastest and most accurate shot in our village."

"If you are sure then lead the way and let's go meet her and see if she will help us. The more the merrier." JoshButro said as he and Domdouken left the shade of the trees and continued across the Empty Plains.

The sun had rose halfway in the sky as they saw more trees in distance. Several more gun shots could be heard as they hurried toward them.

"Do you think she will really join us?" JoshButro asked as he kept pace across the plains. "My village acted as if they had never heard of the evil force in the Dark Realm."

Domdouken looked at him and nodded. "She will join. Many people in my village have heard the tales and know the consequences if something is not done." He looked directly at JoshButro before finishing. "I think most are scared to find out if the story is true and the force annihilates our existence."

"I'm hoping to get as many people as I can find to join. This doesn't sound like an easy task though." JoshButro had a worrisome look as he thought what would happen if he failed on his mission. "I'm not sure how many people to find. Ten, twenty, fifty, or even a hundred. Do you know anything about the evil force, besides the stories."

"Just the stories, but at least everyone in my village believes the stories." Domdouken replied as several more quick booms echoed past them. "We must be getting closer. I don't remember her gunshots being that loud."

"I think if she joins us she can just deafen everyone with her gun." The Great Mage covered his ears as they saw a rock wall in the distance.

After a loud boom sounded, they could see something fly off of the wall. Another shot, another hit. "She is good. Does she do well under stress."

"The very best." Domdouken confidently replied. "She helped defeat our village from an attack by the Bandits. She climbed the tower on top of the armor shop and shot those Bandits before they even knew what hit them. One got away but we haven't seen them try to rob our village since."

A few more booms sounded as they stopped under the shade of a tree and waited to get her attention. "Let's see what happens. Excuse me miss. Can I talk to you for a second?" JoshButro said in a loud voice.

"You can as long as you stop yelling. I'm done shooting now." She holstered her gun and walked over to the shade. "I see you have found the ninja from my village. Where did you meet him at?"

"A little ways back, sleeping under a tree." JoshButro answered as she glanced over at Domdouken.

"I had a long practice session and I was tired, so I laid down under the tree and rested." Domdouken defended himself. "I was practicing hard..." He couldn't finish his sentence before she interrupted him.

"More like hardly practicing. You just wanted an excuse to leave the village and not listen to people panic about the evil force constantly." She quickly replied. "It's getting worse. More residents are freaking out, and honestly there haven't been any new stories in the past three weeks."

"I just needed a break from everyone." Domdouken concluded. "Speaking of new stories, this man came from the neighboring village and has good news."

"I am the Great Mage JoshButro and I am trying to find people wanting to help defeat the evil force." He explained but she looked like she had heard the same story too many times. "I guess I should just ask if you can help and stop telling you something you already know."

"It's the same story over and over. It's an important story, but it's just repetitive at this point." She said while looking at both men. "I want to help, that's why I have been out here shooting everything on top of the wall. My village calls me the best shooter they have ever seen, but you can call me Aroara."

"It's nice to meet you and welcome to the party. We can use all the help we can get." JoshButro said as he looked around to see if any other people were roaming around the Empty Plains. "Do you know of anyone else that might be willing to join us?"

Domdouken tried to answer but Aroara talked over him. "You wouldn't have seen anyone because you were sleeping, and besides you went way off in the distance so no one would find you. Most of our skilled fighters are all practicing closer to the village. I think it's so they can retreat faster in case an enemy sneaks up behind them." Aroara laughed as she said this. "Have you seen anyone else yet?"

"Just the two of you so far. I don't think the three of us are ready though either. Any suggestions on where we should go now." JoshButro asked hoping to get a good answer.

"We could go to our village. Find other people practicing outside the village. It's located over there through the woods." Domdouken turned and pointed towards a large group of dark trees.

"Good idea." Aroara added as she started to head toward the tree line. "It's just through here and we should get there soon."

Domdouken followed her a few steps before he stopped to see why the Great Mage was not behind him. "You coming?"

"I'll be there in a second. I just want to see something." He walked further down the wall as something had caught his eye. "This seems out-of-place. Did you see this earlier Aroara?" JoshButro reached down and pulled something out of the rock wall.

"I did not see it. What is it?" Aroara questioned as she looked at the crimson orb in his hand.

"It's just a red sphere. Does it do anything?" Domdouken asked as the orb burst into flames in JoshButro's hand. "What is happening? Don't let it burn you."

"It doesn't hurt at all. It just looks like it does." He answered and the flames disappeared. "That was strange." The Great Mage shook the orb again and nothing happened. "Is that it?"

"If you are a Great Mage like you say you are, what does that mean?" Aroara wondered while continuing to stare at the orb. "Do that again."

JoshButro held the orb again and concentrated on the flames he had just held in his hand. "Flames!" He said and waited for something to happen, but nothing did. "Inferno!" He tried again with the same result. "Incinerate!" He tried a third time and still nothing happened.

"Maybe don't over think it." Aroara suggested. "Keep it simple. Fire!" She said towards the orb and the flames reappeared. "That's how it's done."


	3. CURE

Chapter Two – CURE

"How did you know that the orb could be activated with such a simple command?" JoshButro asked as he held the burning orb in his hand. "This could be very useful in our journey."

"Maybe... It won't do much good if it doesn't hurt when you hold the orb. You can't even do anything with it." Domdouken added to the conversation. If you are a mage, you should be able to use the fire."

"If it is that easy to make the flames appear, it should be that easy to actually use the magic." Aroara also added. "I figured out how to make them reappear." She smiled at this and motioned to be handed the orb. "Can I try to use the magic?"

"Of course." JoshButro said and as he handed her the orb, the flames immediately went out upon touching her hand. "What happened?"

Aroara looked just as confused holding the lifeless orb in her hand. "Fire!" She said towards it, but nothing happened. "Fire!" She repeated.

"Fire!" JoshButro commanded and still no flames appeared. Maybe I am the only one that can use it like that." He took the orb back from Aroara and closely examined it trying to figure out its puzzle. "I should know this, but I forgot some of the knowledge passed down to me."

Domdouken swiped the orb from his hand as he was lost in thought. "Leave it up to me, I'll figure it out." He tossed the orb between his hands. "Fire!" He said hoping to solve this riddle. He even tried holding above his head to reflect the sunlight off of it. "Nope. That didn't work either."

JoshButro snapped out of his thought. "What are you doing? Don't drop that. We may not find another. It would be nice to find two more so I can share fire with you two."

"Fire!" Domdouken repeated the word and released the orb. He dropped to one knee and pulled out his samurai sword. The blade was red hot and had burned him the way he was carrying it in his belt. "Ouch. That really hurt. Is there a mark?"

"I think you figured it out Domdouken." Aroara laughed at the dumb way he made this discovery. "Try it on me. Except I'm going to be smart and set my gun down on the rock wall." She opened the chamber of the revolver and set it on top of the wall. "Do as I say..." She looked at the orb and picked it up. "Take this and make the flames appear."

JoshButro held the orb again. "Fire!" The flames came to life again.

"Now say: 'Share Fire'." Aroara instructed.

"Share Fire." He repeated and waited a moment. "Nothing..."

Aroara held up one finger to stop him. "Fire!" She said and looked at her gun. The bullets were red hot. "That worked." She slyly smiled as she picked up her gun. "It seems you have to share the magic with us and we can call upon it. Domdouken with your samurai sword, and me with the gun bullets."

"Well that's good we figured it out for the two of you. Now we just need to find out how the mage uses the fire." JoshButro sighed and thought how the orb was ablaze in only his hand.

"There has to be a way. You seem to be the only one to activate the orb." Domdouken reminded. "The orb went dead as soon as Aroara touched it."

"Only you can release the magic contained in the orb." Aroara added as they all stared at the orb. "Maybe there is another word to trigger the effect for you."

The Great Mage was slightly frustrated his companions could use the fire from the orb but he could not. "What words do I have to use to make this thing shoot fire." He held his arm straight above his head as the frustration started to show. "I may be the weak link if I can't get this orb to cast fire."

A large fireball shot out of the orb and engulfed the shade tree branches above him. The others saw this and took off running. Several seconds passed and the entire tree was blackened and charred. The fireball dissipated and all that remained was the trunk and a few random branches.

"How did that not burn you? That was a very impressive fireball. I mean look at the tree." Domdouken was almost cheering at this accomplishment. "It looks like a used campfire."

"He is immune to the fire remember." Aroara showed off her knowledge on what had happened. "He can hold the flaming orb in his hand and it doesn't hurt him, so I'm assuming when he casts it, he is still immune."

JoshButro looked up at the remains of the tree. "I think I need some practice before I start a forest fire. I think I found the right words to make this happen." He stood in awe at what he had just done. "This orb contains more magic than it looks. I still wonder why it was hidden in the rock wall." The more he thought, the more questions he had.

"I don't know. Maybe someone left it here for you to find or for me to find while practicing shooting." Aroara tried to reason, but none of it made sense.

"No one could have known you or me would have been at this spot to find it." JoshButro looked at the orb again to see if any marking would tell who put it there. "It just seems like we were meant to find it here."

"Like you were meant to find me?" Domdouken added.

"Like you were meant to find him sleeping." Aroara sarcastically added. "But you found him, then found me, and now let's go find more of our villagers. There should be more to join our party.

JoshButro joined the other two and they walked toward the tree line of the Deep Forest. "Let's keep moving toward the far away lands and hope that I don't burn down the forest before we pass through it." He chuckled, but also worried as he took one last look at the burnt tree next to the rock wall. "Are there any paths around the Deep Forest?" JoshButro asked his fellow travelers. "I don't know if I want to take the chance of burning down the whole forest." He nervously said as he saw the tree line in the distance.

"Just be careful what you use fire on. You know what it does and how to use it, just be careful or we will be running through the flaming forest trying to escape." Aroara joked but the idea of setting an entire forest on fire was very real.

"Not if I cut down trees with my flaming samurai sword first." Domdouken pulled out his sword and held it in front of him. "Fire!" He said as he watched the blade turn red-hot and burst into flames. "Oh yeah. Watch this." He started to wildly swing the sword and stepped forward and back as he practiced his moves. "I'll just slice everything with my sword..."

"Like a hot knife through butter." Aroara laughed as she finished his thought. She took a few steps to her right to avoid the blade. "Please watch where you are swinging that thing."

Domdouken put the sword back into his belt. "I just like seeing the blade lit up with flames. It looks so cool when I use it. Maybe the Dark Realm will be like a dark room and my sword will light it up when I swing."

"I think the Dark Realm already has light in it." JoshButro suggested, but wondered as soon as he said it. "But I've never been there, so it will be a surprise for me when I get there." The thoughts of the Dark Realm made him nervous thinking about what is at the end of his journey.

"It's best not to think that far ahead right now." Aroara stopped walking and reassured his thought. "We will eventually get to the end, but don't rush getting there. No one knows what is waiting for us."

"You are right... Domdouken, watch out!" JoshButro yelled as three red hedgehogs appeared in field in front of them. "What are those things?"

"They look like hedgehogs, but where did they come from? They couldn't have appeared out of thin air." Aroara said as she reached for her revolver. "I don't remember seeing any on my walk out here."

JoshButro thought of a quick plan. "There are three of them and three of us. It would make sense to split up and each of us focus our attack on one of them."

"What makes you think the hedgehogs are against us?" Aroara curiously asked. "They seem so cute and innocent..."

"You think they are still cute as they attack Domdouken. Just look over there." JoshButro pointed ahead at the hedgehogs as they rolled into it a ball and sped towards the ninja. "Now do you believe me?"

"We have to go help him. He doesn't seem to think anything is happening." Aroara said as she unholstered her gun and took off running toward the hedgehog fight.

The hedgehogs continued rolling toward Domdouken and he had to jump over their attacks until the other two showed up. "Glad you two made it. I wasn't liking the one versus three so much. Now we can show them who we are. Three on three is a little bit more fair."

"To be fair they are only hedgehogs. Did you really need our help?" Aroara was disappointed in having to step in for such an easy fight she thought. "These things look easy to fight, so we should be done and on our way in a minute."

The hedgehogs stopped their rolling and lined up directly across from the party. They looked confused on how to attack since the sides were even. After looking at each other and giving it a thought, they rolled in unison toward the party.

"Get ready to jump over them. Jump high and they will miss." JoshButro commanded as he watched the hedgehogs getting closer. "Jump!" He yelled and all three members leaped as high into the air as they could and landed. "We made it." He said just in time to turn around and see the hedgehogs circle back around to where they started.

"We should attack now." Aroara suggested as the hedgehogs seemed to be waiting for something.

"I'll go first." Domdouken said as he drew his sword. "Fire!" He said to the sword and the blade turned red-hot with flames. He ran toward the hedgehog and cut it with his sword. "Take that you little hedgehog." Domdouken said as he finished the upswing of his slash. The hedgehog disintegrated into a pile of ashes.

"Easy fight. Watch this. Fire!" Aroara aimed her gun at the second hedgehog and rapidly fired all six rounds in the chamber. The first round hit the hedgehog and it started to melt into a flaming puddle. The other shots hitting just sped up the process.

"I think that was overkill." JoshButro said as it was his turn to handle the last hedgehog. "Both of you watch this. Fire!" He said and the orb burst into flames in his hand, then pointed it at the last hedgehog. "Cast Fire!" A fireball erupted from the orb and when it hit its target, the hedgehog exploded with no trace of it remaining.

"Whoa. I think that was overkill." Domdouken said as he was shocked at the Great Mage's power. "I think we win. I don't see any more hedgehogs."

They approached the area where the hedgehogs lined up initially and saw a shiny metal object laying in the puddle left by the second hedgehog. "What is this?" JoshButro thought as he reached down and grabbed it. "It looks like a silver charm. Here, you take it Aroara." He tried to hand it to her but she refused.

"You keep it. I can get my own." She reached down and picked up another silver charm. "There are three of them here. That seems strange."

"Let me have one." Domdouken leaned down and grabbed the last charm. "I wonder what it does. Tell us Great Mage."

"Do tell." Aroara added. "It says Cure on the back of the charm if that helps." She held up the charm so JoshButro could see.

He looked at his and saw that word engraved on the back. "I think I know what this does. Don't lose it because it is vitally important. Come on, I'll explain along the way to the forest."


	4. SILENCE

Chapter Three – SILENCE

"So is it story time?" Aroara asked as the party closed the distance between them and the Deep Forest.

"You still need to tell us about these charms and why they are so important." Domdouken asked the Great Mage.

JoshButro looked how close they were to the entrance of the forest. "I do remember some of the stories passed down from mage to mage." He paused as he thought how to explain. "The forest is perfect to go to right now. In fact it is why there are several villages built around this particular forest. Do you both believe in magic?"

They both looked at each other before Aroara answered. "Well yeah. We saw you pull fire out of that orb. That was magic."

"That was basic elemental magic. Any mage can pull that magic from the orbs." JoshButro held out his charm. "Take this charm for instance. It is full of magic, but I can not use it without help."

"Just share it with us and we can help." Domdouken simply added. "It worked with the fire..."

"That is different." JoshButro said before he could get too far into his thought. "What I did with fire was gave you both the ability to use it in your own way. This cure magic works differently and the mages have always had help with it." He led the way to the entrance of the forest. "And this is where I need to go to help release the magic in this charm."

"I thought you didn't want to go through the forest for fear of burning it down." Domdouken questioned as he followed. "What are we doing in here anyways?"

"You scared?" Aroara said in a sarcastic tone. "I thought you were a ninja that would run into any battle."

Domdouken looked over at her. "I'm not scared. It just looks dark in this forest and we may need to light the way, but not with the huge fireball. I don't want..."

"I'm not going to burn the forest down. I just need to learn to control my magic more." JoshButro nervously said. "I only burnt down one tree."

"More like toasted it toasted it to a crisp." Aroara corrected. "What are we looking for anyways?"

The Great Mage slowed down and listened to the sounds of the forest. "There is something special about this forest, and we need to find it." He held up the silver charm and hoped to get a reaction from it.

"The forest is too dense to reflect sunlight off of that." Domdouken chuckled as he took out his charm and copied the movements. "It didn't work with the orb, and it isn't working with the charm. Are you sure you are a mage?"

"He got the orb to set itself on fire, and he gave us fire. You couldn't make fire appear." She teased Domdouken because he couldn't get any of the magic to happen on his own. "Do you need our help?"

"I think I found it." JoshButro held the charm up and stared at it. "Cast Cure." He said to the charm and a thin green light shot out from it and shined deep into the forest. "Over there. That is what I am looking for. I can use this to light our way."

"That's good. Fireballs and trees..." Domdouken started before being interrupted.

"One tree." JoshButro sighed as he knew that was never going to get old. "Hello? I need help with this cure charm. Is there still a fairy in this forest?"

Aroara stopped as she comprehended what she just heard. "A fairy? They live here? I never knew that."

"They are the keepers of healing magic and their history goes back as far as the mages. I can pull magic from elemental orbs, but healing magic has to be given to mages. That is why we are..."

"Hello." A soft voice said as it approached the party. "Light off." It said and the green light disappeared from the charm. "I thought that was the voice of a Great Mage. It has been a while since a mage needed the help of the fairies."

"Fairies. So there are more than one of you?" Aroara questioned.

"I am the only one living in this forest, but fairies are scattered all over the world. Most are hiding from the evil that is spreading across the land." The fairy answered in a softer voice.

Domdouken paid more attention when he heard these words. "Not only are we going after the evil force, but we can find the fairies along the way. Every last one of them."

"I think we may need to in order to gain the healing power of the fairies if we are to stand a chance against the evil force." JoshButro said as he thought about different locations to explore. "Where..."

"I do not know where they are hiding. You have to seek that on your own." The fairy sadly answered. "But I can help you with the reason you came here. Hold up your charm."

JoshButro held up his charm. "Are you giving everyone to ability to cure?"

"If that helps you better, I can." The fairy replied. "If they wish to cure also, hold up your charms."

The others held up their charms and the fairy chanted a simple saying and a green light surrounded their hands. "Thank you. This will be a big help in our journey." The Great Mage thanked the fairy for her magic.

"You are welcome. You just need to show them how to use it." The fairy winked at JoshButro. "And if I can ask a favor in return."

"Anything." Aroara answered, smiling since she had learned magic she could use herself. "Anything we can do to help, please ask."

"Find my friends. They are scared and hiding. Please find them, and let them know we are all safe." The fairy asked of them. "That is my only request. Find them and they can further your curing ability. And whatever you do, do not lose your charm. It is enchanted and can be used by others, even your enemies."

JoshButro took these words in and remembered them. "We can do this. Thank you for your help." He put the charm in his pocket. "We should continue our journey through the forest to the village."

"Just through the forest and we are home." Domdouken said as he glanced at Aroara. "It will be good to be home soon, and besides what's the worst that can happen in this forest..."

The fairy retreated back into the thick trees and the party continued on the path they started.

"Where to now?" Domdouken asked as they progressed through the forest. "Did we come in here just to meet the fairy? We could have went around the forest and still made it back to the village by nightfall.

"The main reason for entering the forest was to get the fairy's help with the curing magic, but it is also faster to go through here than around it." JoshButro said as he continued walking." There are many paths we could take to reach where we are going, but we need to explore everything we can."

Aroara looked around. "What else do you think is in this forest? All I see is trees."

"Anything could be here. Anything could be anywhere and we won't know unless we look." The Great Mage instructed. "Something that no one considers useful, could be an important find. Before the forest fairy, would you have thought the silver charm contained as much power as it did."

"I still want to know how the cure magic works." Aroara asked, hoping the cure demonstration was as exciting as the fire. "Can you show us how it works?"

JoshButro stopped and grabbed his charm. "I can teach you, even though you are the only one that can use it currently." He said to the ninja mage. "You are the only one not at full health, because you took some damage during that last fight." He held up the charm and Domdouken did the same. "Now cast it on yourself." He watched as Domdouken tried out the new magic.

"Cast Cure." Domdouken said and a faint green light shone from the charm and hit him. The intensity increased for a second then disappeared. "It feels like it restored my energy. Like I am ready to fight and run into battle yelling my war cry."

"You have a war cry? Does it sound like the time the hedgehogs attacked us and you stood there while they ran into you and we came to your rescue." Aroara joked as they made their way deeper into the forest.

"Speaking of hedgehogs..." JoshButro pointed ahead of them. "Is that one or two I see in the distance?"

Domdouken squinted to try to see farther. "Where? I don't see anything. You just want to torch one of them and set a tree on fire, so you can blame it on the battle."

"You still scared of a little fire." Aroara teased. "Besides only JoshButro can prevent forest fires. Isn't that right?"

"I just need to watch where I cast my magic and we will be alright." The Great Mage said as he pulled out the fire orb to look at it. "Fire." The orb was surrounded by flames and Domdouken quickly noticed.

"That's quite enough. We don't need anything bad to happen." Domdouken quietly said as three hedgehogs jumped out from behind a tree and confronted the group. "Hedgehogs! You were right." He removed his sword and stood in a position ready to attack.

Aroara unholstered her gun and stood between the others. "These things should be easy to kill just like last time." She stared at the one in the middle as it looked like it was up to no good.

Domdouken ran up to the first hedgehog and swung his sword at it. It took the hit and fell backwards and stood back up. "What happened? It didn't die. It's still standing there." The hedgehog stared at Domdouken.

"You didn't use fire against the hedgehog. Fire makes us stronger." Aroara added as she gave her bullets the power they needed. "Fire." She said right before shooting the middle hedgehog with a single bullet. The hedgehog was hit and started to melt into a puddle. "One shot is all I need. Your turn JoshButro."

"It looks so easy just shooting and turning the hedgehog into a puddle. I can play this too. Cast Fire." He said and pointed the orb at the hedgehog directly in front of him. The fireball hit it and exploded. Burning pieces hit the trees but did not ignite them. "I guess that works." JoshButro laughed as he took another look at the orb and the destruction that it left.

"Time to finish off my hedgehog..." Domdouken started.

"Watch out!" Aroara screamed a moment too late. The hedgehog's hands were burning and it cast a smaller fireball that aimed directly at Domdouken. It was a direct hit and knocked him off of his feet. "I'll finish this one off." She said as she pulled the trigger the remaining five times to turn the hedgehog into a melted puddle. "Are you alright? Help me stand him up."

They lifted him to his feet. "The cure charm will take away the burning feeling." JoshButro suggested as he pulled the charm from his pocket and held it up. "Cast Cure." The charm revealed a bright green light that flowed to Domdouken and relieved his pain. "How do you feel now?"

Domdouken took a step forward and stretched. "I feel completed healed. I feel like I could run after more hedgehogs. I feel..."

"I feel you need to watch out for such attacks like that." Aroara sarcastically added. "Practicing in an open field is one thing, but actually fighting monsters is totally different."

"We should all be careful. Anyone of us can be hurt, so I suggest that everyone have their cure charms handy." JoshButro explained to the others. "Like I said, that charm is very important and we will need them to heal each other during battle. It's why I had the fairy give everyone curing magic. Suppose I get wounded..."

"Anything can happen to anyone of us on this journey." Aroara thought. "I imagine the further we go the stronger the enemies will get."

JoshButro started walking to distract him from thinking about it. "Only stronger." He said as he approached the melted puddle on the ground and picked up a gold badge. "Silence. That would have been useful five minutes ago."

"What does it do?" Domdouken asked as Aroara hushed him. "Got it. Just follow along and he will show us when the time is right."


	5. HASTE

Chapter Four – HASTE

"We should be about half way through the forest." Aroara said with confidence. "Halfway more and we will be home."

"We can show you our village. So many people you need to meet." Domdouken said as he scanned the distance in front of them. "Do you think we are going to run into any more hedgehogs?" He asked the Great Mage. "I should be better prepared the next time. I'll remember to use my fire, and to make sure I stand my ground, and..."

JoshButro looked over at him slightly annoyed. "Just be more careful next time. I've said it before. The enemies will only get stronger."

"I can do that. Maybe I should just carry my sword in front of me, and carry it with two hands, and..." Domdouken continued talking as fast as he could.

"That's probably enough. We both know you were unprepared, but next time you will be." Aroara said to reassure him.

"I know I can be prepared, and..." Domdouken started as JoshButro stopped walking and turned to face him.

The Great Mage had a more annoyed look on his face this time. "I need to be able to hear through the forest, so we don't get ambushed."

"I'm looking too." Domdouken added. "What are we looking for, or listening for? I can run ahead and scout out the distance, and..."

"I think it's time to show you the new spell." JoshButro pulled out the gold badge he just found and held it toward Domdouken. "Cast Silence." He spoke toward the badge as it shone with a weird pattern of white lines and symbols.

The spell surrounded Domdouken and he tried to follow it with his eyes as it rotated around him. "What does it do? Why is it spinning around me?" He questioned as the lines and symbols disappeared.

"That didn't quiet him down. He can still talk and ramble. I don't want to get ambushed because we can't hear something in the distance." She explained to Domdouken. "If JoshButro says something is important, we should probably listen." She turned back toward JoshButro. "So what did that spell do?"

"He will figure out in a second. Watch this." The Great Mage smiled as he knew the answer and was waiting for the others to figure it out. "Show me how you plan to be better prepared."

Domdouken did as instructed. "I'll show you. You don't believe I can be a great ninja, but I'll show you both I can do it." He pulled out his sword and stood next to a small plant. "Fire." He said but no words came out. "Where's my fire?" He asked in surprise. "Fire." He repeated, but only his mouth moved. His voice could not be heard. "Fire." He tried again as he tapped the sword on the ground.

"He can't use magic." Aroara smirked as she realized what the spell did. "It's silence as in the magic words aren't audible. That's one way to stop him from talking." She laughed as she realized the same could happen to her. "How long does that last?"

"Only a few minutes. Maybe longer depending on the strength of the spell." The Great Mage answered. "I'm sure I could make it stronger, eventually. We aren't the only ones that can use magic."

"The hedgehogs can use magic, especially fire. Isn't that right Domdouken?" Aroara poked at him since the last hedgehog had hit him with a fireball that knocked him to the ground. "Who can use magic?"

Domdouken frowned as he thought how much the fireball hurt, but mainly it hurt his pride more. "I didn't know they could use fire. I'll be better prepared." He countered toward Aroara.

"I assume every enemy can use magic from the smallest hedgehog to the largest of the evil forces. Magic has existed longer than the mages and fairies. Thousands of years, so by now everyone and everything has had access to learn it." JoshButro told a short story to get his point across. "We need to learn as much of it as we can. Different people specialize in the different types of magic and use them differently." JoshButro thought of a way to demonstrate this. "Here Aroara. Take the badge and cast silence on your gun."

She received the badge and set her revolver on top of a nearby tree stump. "Here goes. Cast Silence." She whispered toward the gun and a smaller display of symbols flowed toward her gun. It disappeared quickly as it seemed to absorb into the gun. She handed back the badge and picked up her gun. "I can still talk." She joked as Domdouken didn't laugh at it.

"I could still talk. I just couldn't say the word fire." He defended himself. "You try to say it, since that spell was funny to cast on me."

"Fire." She said as her voice was able to be heard. "That's really strange." Aroara looked peculiarly at her weapon. She cracked open the chamber to see the bullets glowing their red-hot color. She snapped the chamber shut and aimed through the forest. Slowly pulling the trigger, a bullet fired from the gun but was completely silent as it left the barrel. It hit a small tree in the distance and set it on fire. "Was it just me or..." She said to get a consensus from the group.

"All of us just saw that, we just didn't hear it." Domdouken was shocked at what just happened. "Does that last only a few minutes?"

JoshButro watched the tree burn down. "I hope it's permanent. It was a long shot to try, but I'm glad it worked. Now we can use the gun and still maintain our stealth."

"Did you know that was going to happen or was it a guess." Aroara seemed amazed like he knew that would happen.

"A guess. A lucky one at that." JoshButro smiled as he saw a second tree now burning behind the first. "That was one bullet, right?"

"Yeah. Why?" Aroara slowly agreed.

Domdouken pulled out his sword and tapped it on the tree stump. "Fire." He spoke to it and it glistened with flames.

"We have more company." The Great Mage informed them as he reached for the fire orb.

"More hedgehogs?" Domdouken said as he readied himself with his sword. "Where are they? I'll take them all down."

"It won't always be hedgehogs." JoshButro confirmed. "The stories from the journeys of the great swordsmen and great archers speak of dragons and other magnificent creatures." He thought about some of the stories. "So many different types of enemies we are likely to face."

Aroara pointed up into the tree branches. "Those are new, because last time I checked hedgehogs can't fly. Are those an enemy to us?"

"Everything is going to be an enemy to us. It's how life outside the villages are." JoshButro explained to the others. "Long ago and many wars ago, the creatures learned that it was survival of the fittest in the world. So many creatures have changed and evolved to continue living. You didn't think hedgehogs learned fire just to make campfires and roast marshmallows. It's self-defense."

"But we have a way to silence their magic. We can just use that on every enemy, and then no one can use magic against us." The ninja mage thought as a reasonable idea.

"I'm thinking by the way you are shaking your head, it's not that easy." Aroara noticed as the Great Mage was thinking how to expand the history lesson.

"Just as the creatures have learned magic to attack with, they have also learned magic to defend with." He informed Domdouken. "The stronger the enemies are, the more powerful our spells need to be to defeat them. Right now, I don't think we are anywhere close to powerful enough yet."

Aroara continued to stare into the tree branches watching for more enemies. "It may just take time. I know of one person in my village that can help with magic, but she is a different type of magic user..."

"What's wrong?" Domdouken asked as he gripped the handle of his sword. "Another fight? I'm guessing there are going to be lots of fights along the way."

"Yes." JoshButro simply said. "It is the enemies defending themselves, and some of them feel the evil force too."

"Why are you worried? I thought you were a great ninja." Aroara turned towards Domdouken. "Don't tell me you are scared already. All I see is a flock of bats swooping down towards us..."

JoshButro pulled out the fire orb. "Don't miss our friend the hedgehog." He joked as he got into a stance ready for battle.

A swarm of bats flew down from the trees and hovered right next to a hedgehog. "Bats. Those are new." Aroara said as her look turned from amusement to shock.

The hedgehog set its hands on fire using the spell it know. Then it faced the swarm of bats and held up its hands until the bats were glowing with red flames. The bats flew at Domdouken before he could pull his sword out of his belt.

"That's definitely new." Aroara said as the bats flew past Domdouken. "You ducked? No weapon slash or counter to the bats?"

"I wasn't prepared like I wanted to be." Domdouken sadly admitted. "All that talk and those flaming bats still caught me off-guard. What should I do to be better prepared?"

"I don't think now is the time to discuss that. How about after we defeat the hedgehog and bats, we can have a nice long conversation on battlefield readiness." JoshButro finished just in time to jump over the hedgehog rolling at him. "See, always prepared for anything."

Domdouken finally removed his sword from his belt. "Fire. I remembered this time." He said with excitement as his eyes glowed the same shade as the sword. "I'll take you out in one shot this time." He yelled as he ran toward the hedgehog and slashed up with his sword. The hedgehog disintegrated into ashes as he finished his swing and ran back toward the others. "I did it that time."

"Just watch how many times you use the fire sword. You only have so much mana... Can we discuss all of this after the battle?" JoshButro asked again as the flaming bats continued to hover in the air in front of them.

"Easy shot, then we can discuss everything." Aroara pulled out her revolver and fired into the swarm. "Only five shots?"

"One was the test shot after you silenced your gun." The Great Mage reminded. "I think you missed the bats anyways." He noticed as they continued to swarm in the air. "Fire." He smiled as the orb was engulfed with flames. "Cast Fire." The orb shot out its fireball that encircled the bats and exploded leaving no trace of them.

"You really burnt them, as usual." Aroara happily cheered. "What was that? That gold thing that fell from the bats, well... what was the bats." She ran up and looked at the ground. "This fell from the bats?"

Domdouken slowly approached her. "A gold pocket-watch. That really makes no sense." He tried to grab it from her hands but she reacted too quickly.

"It may just be a pocket-watch." JoshButro added. "It may not be special at all. Not everything on this journey is going to have special powers."

Aroara opened it up. "It looks like a regular pocket-watch, but the face is washed away and the only thing it says is Haste. Maybe try to see if it works." She handed the Great Mage the pocket-watch.

"It may not be that easy. Some items are enchanted and only certain people know how to use..." He stopped abruptly and closed the pocket-watch. "Did you hear that?"

"I didn't hear anything." Domdouken whispered as he pulled his sword as quietly as possible. "I can be prepared. I'm ready this time. What was that? I saw something move in the trees."

"You scared now?" Aroara teased Domdouken as she saw the trees move too. "What is that? It looks... it looks..." A loud shriek covered her voice as she tried to finish.

JoshButro put away the pocket-watch. "Our history lesson is going to have to wait for now. Follow me."

"Are we going where I think we are?" Domdouken whispered as he ran to check up to the others.


	6. CHOCOMOG

Chapter Five – CHOCO/MOG

"I hope you two are still back there." JoshButro said as he peered over his shoulder to see if the others were keeping up. The trees were moving as something was hiding among them. "I see it. In the trees, straight ahead."

Aroara caught up to the Great Mage. She unholstered her gun. "Fire!" She yelled and aimed at the bulk of the trees firing the six rounds in the chamber. "I don't think I hit anything, except..."

"That tree is on fire now." Domdouken caught up to the group. "Are you going to shoot fire at the rest of the trees, and should we be running the opposite way..."

"It was one tree!" JoshButro seemed annoyed at this remark. "You catch one tree on fire and it's the never ending joke."

"Well, good job Aroara. Not only is that tree on fire..." Domdouken hesitated as he seemed scared. "That tree is also moving towards us." He pointed his samurai sword at the flaming walking tree.

The tree began to scream as it charged towards the Great Mage. Aroara quickly reloaded her gun as JoshButro pulled the crimson orb from his pocket. "We can do this. We can defeat this tree." He said as Aroara started laughing.

"Tree? Like a talking tree?" She laughed as the bullets inside her gun started to glow. "I guess we need to get to the root of the problem then."

"How about we just run away, because that tree is coming at us even faster now." Domdouken turned around and ran in the opposite direction until three large trees blocked the path. "Wait! We just came this way."

"You can't run away." The Great Mage informed him. "There will be times where we face magical beasts and can not proceed or retreat until they are defeated."

Aroara shot another six rounds at the tree as It was only a few feet away. "Am I even hurting it, besides the fact it is on fire."

The tree creature stopped in front of them and waited for a second. "Foolish beings. If you wish to proceed, you must first defeat me."

"See, I was right." JoshButro pointed out. "I do know some mage history."

"I would hope so, if we are expected to follow you across the land." Domdouken straightened his sword, preparing for a fight. "Can't we just run around the monster and towards the clearing..."

"Foolish beings. If you wish to proceed, you must first defeat me." The creature repeated.

Aroara rolled her eyes. "We heard you the first time." She slowly holstered her gun. "If this battle is anything like the hedgehogs, is the creature going to wait until we attack first?"

"We can find out the hard way by just standing here for a while and see what happens." JoshButro suggested as they stood and stared at the creature.

"So now what are we doing?" The ninja mage started to sheath his sword and stood waiting for anything to happen.

The three mages just stood there looking at the creature who stared back at them. The longer they waited, the longer nothing happened. The forest was quiet except for a few birds and the flames blazing along the left arm of the creature.

"Maybe if we wait long enough, the monster will just burn to death." Domdouken hoped so he didn't have to fight the creature. He tried to sidestep away from the group and advanced on the creature. The creature also sidestepped to meet his projected path. "I guess we should fight it."

"Foolish beings. If you wish to proceed..." The creature repeated a third time before Aroara interrupted.

"We heard you the first two times." She teased.

JoshButro stepped forward. "We will challenge you, now let's start this battle." He thought for a second about the best strategy for this fight. "So I'll go first." He returned the crimson orb to his pocket and retrieved the golden pocket-watch. It opened with the press of a button. "Cast Haste." He said and waited, but nothing happened.

"Well if you both aren't going to fight, then I have to." Aroara pulled out her revolver and shot all six rounds. The bullets pierced the monster, but didn't do much damage. "That didn't work as well as I thought it would. Does anyone else have any ideas?"

"Foolish beings. Now it's my turn." The creature gathered its strength and charged Domdouken and shouldered him to the ground. It stood over him and laughed for a second before retreating.

"Are you alright?" The Great Mage questioned. "Maybe your turn should be healing yourself. Remember you have a charm you can use."

"Yeah, so we aren't the ones always having to save you." Aroara added.

Domdouken stood up and brushed himself off. "I can take care of myself. I just need to be better prepared for battles." He pulled out his charm and held it up. "Cast Cure." He spoke to the charm and a green light emerged and swirled around him. "Now I feel better."

"That's always a good thing." JoshButro encouraged as he was lost in thought. Nothing they had tried yet had done any damage against the creature. "There has to be something we are missing." He wondered and pulled the crimson orb and ran it through his fingers.

"So, what's the plan?" Aroara asked, but didn't receive an immediate answer.

"I don't know." JoshButro frowned. "The creature is still on fire and that doesn't seem to be hurting it. Haste didn't work. Your bullets went right through it, twice. The only things we have left are the samurai sword and..."

The ninja mage's eyes lit up as he saw an opportunity to show everyone that he could be a valuable member of the party. "Fire!" He held the samurai sword in front of him and watched the blade glow. "This should be easy. It's already on fire, so I'm just going to help it burn faster." He tried to run at the creature, but couldn't move. "I can't lift my feet. They feel like lead weights."

"That is correct." The Great Mage nodded at him. "You already took your turn, and now you have to wait."

"You need to give all of us a chance to fight." Aroara said as she motioned to JoshButro to take his turn. "We all need to share and let everyone have their turn."

JoshButro pulled out the crimson orb and considered his options. "If it's already on fire, I don't know if adding more fire to it will make a difference." He decided against a futile attack, took a step back, and rested on one knee. "I am going to skip my turn while I think some more."

Aroara jumped forward and loaded her gun again. "I wonder if..." She randomly shot around them and the creature to see if there was anything special about their surroundings. Nothing. "Well, it was worth a shot." She chuckled and then holstered her weapon.

"Foolish beings. Now it's my turn." The creature repeated as its only saying and charged at JoshButro. It hit him with a deafening thud, but JoshButro was undisturbed. The creature seemed shocked and returned to his side of the battlefield.

"Now it's my turn!" Domdouken yelled as he held up the flaming sword. "Taste my burning steel." He ran at the creature and perfectly timed a slash, but it passed through without leaving a mark.

"The creature is already on fire. That's not going to work." Aroara scolded. "We have to find another way..."

The Great Mage stood up. "I got it!" He dug the badge out of his pocket and aimed it at Domdouken. "Cast Silence." The white symbols flowed from it and spun around the ninja.

"What are you doing? Now I can't..." He was interrupted.

"Now you can't cast fire. I see what you are thinking." Aroara grinned as she took a step back and knelt down.

"Foolish..." The creature stuttered. "Face my wrath." It raised its arms and along with it, a cage made of branches formed around Aroara. "Now let's see you burn your way out of that."

"Your plan will work. So hurry up and get me out of here." Aroara panicked as the cage was barely large enough to sit comfortably in.

Domdouken looked at his dull blade. "This isn't as fun." He walked toward the creature and slowly thrust his sword into the creature's midsection and sliced off its left arm. Shocked, he jumped back and examined the cage Aroara was contained in. "Maybe if I..." But it was too late.

"You can't help her right now." The Great Mage cautioned. "You attacked the creature who now looks angry, so you have to wait. Patience is..."

"Going to get you slapped if you don't hurry and get me out of here." Aroara shook the cage to test for any weak spots. "Take your turn or get me out!" She screamed scaring JoshButro and the creature.

The creature shrugged knowing its time was getting short.

The Great Mage saw the end in sight and again took a step back and rested. "I think we know how to conclude this battle and move on to the village."

"How about me? Can I attack being locked in a box?" The Gun Mage couldn't break out of the cage and just sat there and pouted. "Please hurry." She muttered.

"Foolish... Please just finish me off. I concede this battle." The creature reluctantly said as it stood waiting for Domdouken's killing blow.

As promised, the Ninja Mage ran toward the creature and cut through the center and the creature fell apart into several sections. The cage around Aroara faded away and she stood up and joined the others.

"Stand back for a second." JoshButro cautioned them and removed the crimson orb from his pocket. "Cast Fire." He said as a fireball shot out and burned the pile of wood that was formerly the creature.

The ashes smoldered and condensed into a book with most of the pages missing. Aroara picked it up to examine it. "The Book of Summons?" She read the cover and held it up for everyone to see.

"That is a very powerful book." The Great Mage started to tell a story. "The Book of Summons is a very powerful book and is capable of producing very destructive spells from god-like allies."

"One problem though. Most of the pages are missing." She shook the book to see if anything else was hidden inside. "The only thing I see is a page about summoning chickens."

"Chickens?" Domdouken questioned. "How would summoning chickens help us in battle?"

"It looks like a chicken, but I bet it has another name." The Great Mage corrected. "I bet if you look closely, its name is a Chocobo."

She peered down at the book. "Actually it says 'Choco/Mog'. So you are only half correct. What's a Mog?"

"Maybe it is something that... I got nothing. A Mog could be anything." Domdouken tried to sound smart, but failed.

"I'm not sure how the Mog will help us, but the Chocobo will." JoshButro motioned for the book from Aroara and started walking around the pile of ashes in front of them. "We should be able to leave the forest now and continue on to your village.

Domdouken looked behind him and the trees that blocked the path during the battle were no longer there. "That is strange." He whispered to himself. "I hope I am ready for what lies ahead on this journey."

"Our village is just over the hills outside the forest. We should run into others training to fight the Evil Force, but everyone seemed different when I left."

"I say we should get moving. It's starting to get late, and we need to make it to the village by nightfall." JoshButro closed the book and started for the clearing in the trees.

"We can make it by nightfall, and rest, and be better prepared for the next battle we have to fight." Domdouken agreed.

Aroara pondered the newest addition to their collection. "So, how will the Chocobos help us?"

"When we have more room outside the forest, I'll show you." The Great Mage said as the forest brightened from being a few steps closer to the exit.


End file.
